In the heart of the Broadway business district sits an exciting shop, Queer-owned Phoenix Comics & Games, where patrons are greeted by larger-than-life superheroes flying across the walls on massive posters, and the shelves are lined with action-packed art, from the illustrations of the comics to the beautiful designs decorating the boxes of board games to collectible figures.
"We aim for a casual, fun, and really accepting atmosphere... That's what we shoot for," explained owner and manager Nick Nazar, as he sat down to discuss some of what makes Phoenix so unique.
After the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the store saw a significant drop in sales, largely due to the fact that the doors were forced to close for nearly a year. In order to keep sales up, Nassar even began personally delivering comics and games to patrons' doorsteps, becoming a real-life superhero to so many who were trapped by boredom and fear indoors.
But this June, the place is bustling with new pride. As of June 1, Phoenix Comics & Games is officially back open and ready for business.
"Right now the X-Men line from Marvel is experiencing a really big boom," Nassar informed me. The popularity of the expanding franchise has obviously not been lost on comic fans in Capitol Hill, and so a series of superhero comics selling big at one of the city's most beloved comic stores is really no surprise.
Queer owned, Queer titles
What might be surprising, however, are some of the other popular titles flying off the shelves. Nazar named Genderqueer by Mari Kopi as another of the biggest sellers, saying, "It's a great coming- of-age story about someone that is nonbinary."
Stocking their shelves with Queer stories is important to Nassar. "I think it's a part of [our] identity. We are a Queer-owned comic bookstore, and we want that to be front and center. We want people to know that's what they're getting into when they walk in here. And quite frankly, it never fails to make people feel safe and welcome when they [do]."
The welcoming LGBTQ comic section sits proudly in the center of the business, with titles ranging from classic graphic novels like Fun Home to contemporary guides to different Queer identities. Nassar described the latter as "a series of books that are designed to be guides, if you are a genderqueer person, a Trans person, or nonbinary... they are quick and easy guides you can hand out."
The wide array of comics and graphic novels offered at Phoenix showcases the growth the genre has undergone in the last several decades. Fantasy and action comics are still very popular, but now comic stories for all types of readers are available, from self-help guides to memoirs and even a Queer tarot comic, Tabula Idem, which Nassar has recommened for our Queer summer book club.
"It's a comic book anthology," Nassar explained, "which means it's a bunch of small short stories, and if you don't like one particular art style, you can just move on to the next. It's all themed around the tarot deck, or the major arcana of the tarot."
Space for the community
Phoenix also provides a space for many members of Seattle's LGBTQ gaming and comic community. Before the pandemic, the store was the host to a monthly boardgame meetup called "Queer Geeks." Every second Saturday of the month, Seattle gamers would meet up in the back of the store to share some of their most beloved board games and make new friends along the way.
The store also hosted a monthly feminist comic club. Every month, the group would pick a new comic to read and gather on the last Saturday to discuss and analyze it.
Both groups had to go on hiatus when the store closed last March, but with Phoenix Comics & Games rising out of the ashes, so to speak, the clubs are beginning to come back as well. Queer Geeks will be back in July, and while a set date is not lined up for the feminist comic club, Nassar has hopes it will follow suit.
Space for the community
Phoenix also provides a space for many members of Seattle's LGBTQ gaming and comic community. Before the pandemic, the store was the host to a monthly boardgame meetup called "Queer Geeks." Every second Saturday of the month, Seattle gamers would meet up in the back of the store to share some of their most beloved board games and make new friends along the way.
The store also hosted a monthly feminist comic club. Every month, the group would pick a new comic to read and gather on the last Saturday to discuss and analyze it.
Both groups had to go on hiatus when the store closed last March, but with Phoenix Comics & Games rising out of the ashes, so to speak, the clubs are beginning to come back as well. Queer Geeks will be back in July, and while a set date is not lined up for the feminist comic club, Nassar has hopes it will follow suit.
Depth through art and writing
One reason Phoenix has remained so beloved by members of the LGBTQ community is that the medium of comics itself is often misunderstood, not unlike the lives of Queer folks. For those who are not immersed in the comics community, these books may seem like childish or silly, like glorified picture books. They don't hold the same academic prestige as prose novels — and yet they can carry the same depth.
"One thing about comic books that really sets them apart from prose books is that they use both art and writing to really help shape what the writer and artist want you to see," Nassar said of the profound appeal of the artform. "There is a depth there that just takes extra time to develop in prose. Oftentimes when someone is being super descriptive, you can get lost in it. In comic books, it's there right on the page."
So, if you are looking for a reading experience that bridges the depth of language and the beauty of art, take a walk down to Phoenix Comics & Games and pick up a copy of Tabula Idem or any of hundreds of other titles that might catch your eye and spark your imagination
Phoenix Comics & Games can be found at 113 Broadway E. or online at shop.phoenixseattle.com.